Meet some of the people working to bring back the Yukon Quest in 2027
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The iconic sled dog race was cancelled last month after a tumultuous few years
When veteran musher Frank Turner looks back on the 24 years he raced in the Yukon Quest sled dog race, he refers to his team as the “little choo choo train.”
Despite winning the race in 1995, Turner says most years he and his team were at the back of the pack, but no matter where he finished, he kept coming back.
“I felt so much in love with the connection I had with the team out on the trail.”
Turner shared his passion for mushing and the Quest with his wife Ann Tayler, who began handling for Turner’s team in 1992. Tayler then joined the Quest board in the late 90s and the pair have held various roles on the board for the last few decades, before stepping away after the 2025 race.
In recent years, the race has faced numerous challenges, including climate change, unpredictable trail conditions, and financial difficulties. And in 2022, the once-1,600 kilometre international race from Whitehorse to Fairbanks Alaska, split into two shorter races — one in Canada and one in Alaska.
Those challenges culminated in this year’s race being cancelled, leaving many supporters questioning whether the race would return.
When Turner and Talyer heard the news, they knew they had to come back.
“I kind of felt that fire again,” Turner said. “Then I thought maybe, maybe we can do something about this.”
Tayler said they contacted others in the mushing community and they quickly realized that they weren’t the only ones who wanted to save the Quest.
“It’s an opportunity to reinvigorate a piece of our culture and history,” Tayler said.
New board elected at special meeting
Just over a month after the race was cancelled, Turner and Tayler formed a working group, and Tuesday night, they held a special meeting in the hopes of electing a new board and bringing back the Quest in 2027.
Community members, fans and mushers filled a conference room in the Hyatt in downtown Whitehorse for Tuesday night’s meeting, with many more attending by video. The group nominated ten people to be on the Quest’s new board.
The new board will remain in place until it holds an annual general meeting sometime this spring, at which point there will be an election for the board that will remain in place until the 2027 race.
For now, there’s a lot of work to do for the new board, including getting the organization back in good standing as a society, and assessing the Quest’s financial situation, new board member Michael Burtnick said.
Five members of the new Yukon Quest board. From left to right: Shelly Musyj, Michael Burtnick, Johnathan Alsberghe, Kris Bruneau and Morgan Sapir. (Tori Fitzpatrick/CBC)
Burtnick said he moved his family to the Yukon because of the Yukon Quest.
“It’s something that I followed for much longer than I’ve been running dogs myself. And when I started running dogs, it’s something that I dreamt of doing, it was one of the big goals.”
Shelly Musyj also wants to see the Quest continue. She’s one of the other members of the new board.
Growing up in northwestern Ontario, Musyj used to follow the race online, and after she moved to the Yukon, she joined the board in 2022. She left the board last year, when her life got too busy.
When she found out the Quest was cancelled, Musyj says she was devastated, but now, she said she’s excited for the Quest’s future.
“At the AGM that we hosted last year … there were 10 people in the room and maybe as many people on Zoom,” she said. “And now this was 50 people in the room and another dozen or more on Zoom.”
Race route a challenge
Musyj said one of the biggest challenges for the new board will be planning a route for the 2027 race. The race was cut short in 2024, due to open water on the trail and in 2025 the race was moved to a new route from Teslin to Ross River.
“I think the environment is probably the biggest issue with that trail,” she said. “There are … conflicting ideas and opinions about these things.
At the meeting, the group discussed several possible options for the route. Those included going from Whitehorse to the Alaska border near 40 Mile and back, extending the 2025 route to Pelly Crossing, or potentially running the race along the Dempster Highway. Though one musher pointed out that as of now, there are no dog sledding trails that follow the Dempster Highway.
No matter who wins or where the race takes place, Turner says the Quest’s legacy is in its stories.
“Life is about stories, and if we can do something to keep the Quest going to generate our stories, then I have a purpose.”
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: Veteran Yukon musher wins 2nd Yukon Quest in a row, CBC News
Norway: Norway ambassador visits Alaska to talk climate, Russia and, yes, Norwegian dog mushing success, Alaska Public Media
United States: Iditarod head vet, Stuart Nelson, dies suddenly at age 71, Alaska Public Media
